The season premiere of “Deadliest Catch” will be April 13, 2010. This will be the sixth season of the “Deadliest Catch” and the fifth season that the “Cornelia Marie” has been featured on the show. The television crew from Original Productions boards our boat during the fall for King Crab season and then in January to videotape the Opilio Season. They videotaped the King Crab season on board with Capt. Phil and the crew. In fact, the King Crab season included a “near collision” of the F/V Cornelia Marie and the chase boat.
Up to and through the passing of our skipper, the Discovery Channel cameras have been rolling. The cameras were present in the hospital with Capt. Phil and up to the end. The cameras then accompanied much of the activity in the weeks following, up to the private memorial for Capt. Phil on February 21st. We don’t know how Discovery will choose to edit the show. It’s true that Phil allowed the cameras into his hospital room after surgery. While still recovering from surgery, Phil was unable to talk so he wrote a note to keep shooting, because “we need a great finish to this story”. I actually thought one week after the stroke that he indeed was going to make a great recovery. As a boy coming of age on Alaska fishing boats, I always thought of skippers as rather indestructible.
According to the show producer Thom Beers, whether any of the hospital footage will air will be a decision made later with Phil’s family. I think that is the right decision and really the only appropriate way to go.
Most likely the cameras will be present at the beginning of the next King Crab opening in October to videotape Phil’s ashes being scattered into the Bering Sea. Whether the Discovery Channel wishes to follow the Cornelia Marie through the remainder of the King Crab season and the Opilio season will be up to them. Of course, the F/V Cornelia Marie is a fishing boat and needs to keep on working. Appearing on the TV show doesn’t pay the bills, only bringing crab aboard does that. We were fishing before the TV show and we’ll be fishing after the TV show.
Many have asked us if Jake and Josh will continue fishing. It’s too soon to tell. As part owners of the boat, they would always have that choice. Many have also asked if Josh or Jake will now take over as Captain. The job of skipper and deckhand are two different worlds. Many great deckhands never become skippers for very good reasons. Being a skipper is one the most stressful jobs in the world. Things will become more clear as the months go by and we get closer to King Crab in October.
The F/V Cornelia Marie will finish Opilio fishing in a few weeks. Our current skipper, Derrick Ray has done his best to finish off this tough season. As stated earlier, Derrick is an old family friend who started his career earlier on the precursor to the Cornelia Marie – the F/V Milky Way. The Milky Way was one of the boats owned by Ralph Collins who owned and built the F/V Cornelia Marie.
We are grateful to all the fans of the Cornelia Marie and Capt. Phil. Thank you for the many nice words left here and other places on the internet. I hope this blog entry answers some questions. Capt. Phil was one of a kind and is missed by everyone. I look forward to the new season with apprehension. It will be strange to see Phil brought back to life on videotape only to face what we all know happened. Yet, I also assume the camera captured new joyful and humorous moments too – so that will be good.
Discovery Channel hosted a memorial service for Capt. Phil’s family and friends today. It was an event most agreed Phil would have loved. F/V Cornelia Marie crew members flew in from the Bering Sea to join former crew members and other Bering Sea captains. Many of the “Deadliest Catch” boat captains were in attendance to [...]
(The following is an excerpt from mikeroweworks.com) A few years ago I was in Seattle, preparing to film the first round of After the Catch. For those of you unfamiliar with the program, After the Catch is a talk show in a bar, where The Captains and crew from Deadliest Catch gather to chat about [...]
This article comes from People magazine
Before his death on Feb. 9 at 53, Phil Harris, the tough and colorful captain of the Cornelia Marie on Discovery’s Deadliest Catch, fought against all odds, came out of a medically-induced coma following lengthy surgery, spent a few more days with friends and family – and set his two [...]
The following article is by ROSE COX of The Dutch Harbor Fisherman (rcox@alaskanewspapers.com)
To fans of the “Deadliest Catch,” he was captain Phil Harris, the famous crab-killing rider of the wild Bering Sea.
But to those living at the tip of the Aleutian chain, he was just plain Phil, one of the most endearing, demanding – and [...]
My mother Cornelia Marie and I wish to thank everyone for your support on behalf of Josh, Jake and the rest of the family. During this most difficult time you have expressed your sadness and offered your prayers and good wishes. Many of you have also shared your concern for Phil’s boys. Many nice of [...]
It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to our dad – Captain Phil Harris. Dad has always been a fighter and continued to be until the end. For us and the crew, he was someone who never backed down. We will remember and celebrate that strength. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and [...]
Capt. Phil was talking to friends and family today; showing his greatest progress since he suffered a massive stroke one week ago. It’s been a long and difficult week for friends and family as Phil was medivaced from St. Paul Island and under went surgery.
Capt. Phil’s sons Josh and Jake have been at this hospital [...]
Thank you to everyone who has shared their concern for Capt. Phil, his family and crew. We have received thousands of emails and comments from everywhere. We know many of you have met Capt. Phil and his boys during one of their public appearances or have spent many hours with him through watching the “Deadliest [...]
Seas 2/Epi 13:
“We cheated death one more time. I feel like a one legged man in an ass Kicking contest!”
Seas 3/Epi 2:
“This ain’t a hamburger stand out here, y’know? This is the real deal and people really die.”
Seas 3/Epi 5:
“You’re not a man ’til you’ve pulled a tooth out with a pair of pliers.”
Seas [...]
The following is a Discovery Channel transcript from a live internet chat with Capt. Phil and Josh on May 22, 2007
Discovery: Welcome to this week’s Deadliest Catch chat. Our guests tonight are Phil Harris, Captain of the Cornelia Maria, and his son Josh Harris. Jake Harris isn’t able to be with us tonight, as he’s [...]
